MANILA, Philippines?Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, chair of the Senate finance committee, confirmed Monday that Senate President Manuel Villar had asked him to insert P200 million for the C-5 road extension project.

But on whether there had been any irregularity involved, ?so far, there?s none, as far as this chair is concerned,? Enrile told reporters after Monday?s four-hour initial hearing on the insertion controversy.

Opposition senators, however, dissatisfied with Enrile?s probe, said they would elevate the case to the Senate ethics committee to determine whether or not Villar?s companies had benefited from the congressional insertion.

When asked to identify the senator responsible for the budget insertion, Enrile said, ?My recollection is it was submitted by the Senate President. I do not remember if it was in writing or not, I cannot recall anymore.?

In confirming the insertion, Enrile said that ?one side says this is for two different projects; another side says it is for the same project.?

?Now there is no question that the Senate President and his family have some properties along the way. When he acquired these, we don?t know. That has not been established. Whether he acquired this after C-5 was planned or was under construction or even before that or only recently, that has not been established,? said Enrile.

He stressed that whether or not the insertion was made for personal gain has also yet to be established.

?As far as I?m concerned, it?s just a human error, the printers made a mistake in the heading, there was no intention to take interest in that,? said Enrile in an interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer after the hearing.

Enrile, a member of Villar?s majority block, had earlier said that his committee would only focus on establishing who made the double insertion but would not investigate ethical issues raised against Villar.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who exposed the double insertion, said the testimony of Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane established that there were indeed two allocations for the same project.

?Ebdane confirmed that the second P200 million was really redundant when he said that it had to be realigned before he could spend it,? Lacson said.

Ebdane told the senators that he only got wind of the second P200-million allocation after the General Appropriations Act of 2008 was approved and that he immediately requested that the funds be realigned to finance the flyover in the C-5 project.

Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya, who also appeared at the hearing, was not sure whether the double insertion was meant for one or two separate projects, but stressed that the second P200 million had been ?impounded.?

Lacson said the minority would now collate its evidence ?to indicate that there is a conflict of interest in what he (Villar) did.? If he has land that will benefit from the opening of the C-5 road, which he proposed to give additional funds to, that is a conflict of interest, Lacson said.

Sen. Pia Cayetano, who chairs the ethics committee, said her committee was duty-bound to look into any complaint filed by the senators. She would decide if Villar has to appear at the hearing only after she receives a formal complaint.

?But I would not go out of my way to make up my own hearing,? said Cayetano, who is also a member of the majority party supporting Villar.

?I honestly have to say, I didn?t see anything improper with that insertion. The project will lead to nothing but good as far as the DPWH is concerned,? she said.

Sen. Manuel ?Mar? Roxas II moved that the senators disclose all insertions they made in the 2008 budget.

Enrile said he was ready to assume full responsibility for all the amendments made under his watch. With a report from Christine O. Avendaño